second thoughts —

Gawker begins appeal against $140M Hulk Hogan sex-tape verdict

Was it wrong for a jury to decide "what's news?"

The online news and gossip site Gawker has begun the process of appealing the $140 million verdict a jury ordered it to pay last month for publishing a sex tape of Terry Bollea, better known as former pro-wrestler Hulk Hogan.

The Gawker appeal is no surprise, as the company has said it will appeal since the verdict was delivered. In motions filed late Monday, the online media outlet has asked for the verdict to be thrown out or the damages "greatly reduced," according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.

Gawker lawyers argue the $25 million in punitive damages that was added on to the $110 million in compensatory damages would be "ruinous." The jury was told that Gawker Media was worth $83 million while its founder Nick Denton was worth $121 million.

If the verdict is not reduced, it could be an existential threat for Gawker. Last year, some of the company's financial details were disclosed as it sought outside investment before the upcoming trial. The company generated a profit of $6.5 million on $44.3 million in revenue in 2014. Last year, it saw $48.7 million in revenue, according to information made public at trial.

One possible appeal argument is that Gawker will argue that the case never should have gone to a jury and that Hogan's public discussion of his sex life made the tape a matter of public concern. "Gawker might argue it was improper for the jury to determine what is 'newsworthy,'" writes Eriq Garner of The Hollywood Reporter, in his article speculating about possible appeal tactics. "Judge Pamela Campbell, whose decisions have been overturned more than those of any of her colleagues in Pinellas County, allowed jurors to determine what 'ceases to be the giving of legitimate information to which the public is entitled and becomes a morbid and sensational prying into private lives for its own sake' — an instruction Gawker's lawyers say all but invited jurors to side with Hogan (aka Terry Bollea)."

“Gawker is now beginning the process of challenging the jury’s verdict in a trial where key evidence was wrongly withheld and the jury was not properly instructed on the Constitutional standards for newsworthiness,” the company said in a statement. “So we expect to be fully vindicated. And even if the verdict were to stand, there is no justification for awarding tens of millions of dollars never seen by victims of death and serious injuries.”